Two Alike
by Crawler
Summary: Somehow, Kurt from an alternate world in which Burt never became a nice guy ends up in the normal Glee world. Finn finds him and brings him home... where the real Kurt is waiting. Hijinks ensue. warning: DARKFIC
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Two Alike

**Author:** Spider

**Characters:** Burt, Finn, Carole, Kurt, and Kurt

**Rating:** PG-13

**Warnings:** Off-screen underage prostitution. Suicide? Character death. Faintly AU

**Spoilers:** For Hudmel stuff. Otherwise... nope.

**Disclaimer:** I _wish_ I had some claim on Glee.

**Summary:** Somehow, Kurt from an alternate world (in which Burt kicked him out of the house for being gay and he was forced to turn to underage prostitution in the crack district to survive, desperately trying to put himself through school so he can get out of Lima on a scholarship) appears in the actual world, and Finn mistakes him for the real Kurt and brings him home. Hijinks and trouble ensue when the two Kurts meet...

**Word Count:** 1042

**Notes:** This was written for a prompt on the Glee angst meme (c o m m u n i t y . l i v e j o u r n a l . c o m / g l e e _ a n g s t _ m e m e / 3 0 6 5 . h t m l ? t h r e a d = 5 0 5 1 1 2 9 # t 5 0 5 1 1 2 9). Chapters are short but I'll try to update every day.

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**TWO ALIKE**

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When the other boy reached up, his fingers flicking unconsciously over his bangs, Burt Hummel's heart dropped out of his chest. That one small gesture, matched with that familiar face (and those _eyes_), completely gutted him and he fell heavily down onto the couch. Immediately, his son was at his side, one hand on his chest, the other on his shoulder, panic in his own pale eyes. "Dad! Dad, are you okay? Is it your heart? Finn, get him out of here! Dad, lie down. I don't know what sort of sick joke-"

Burt cut Kurt off with a finger on his lips, shaking his head. "He can stay," he said roughly, looking up at the other boy. Kurt. A second Kurt. Shorter and thinner than his own, with haunted eyes and a much-less-fabulous outfit, but still unmistakably his son. "Kurt… Kurt, take… take this other Kurt down to your room and get him some clean clothes? And a shower too. I'm sure he'd appreciate some luxuries…"

"Dad!"

"I'm not staying here!"

Both boys protested at the same time, in the same voice, and they shot each other identical suspicious looks. Burt spread his hands. "Look at yourselves! Don't tell me I don't know my own child. Only now… now I seem to have two of you. Kurt. And Kurt. I don't know what happened here, but until we figure things out, you are _both _my sons, and I will take care of _both _of you, understood?"

"You hate me," the second Kurt answered, folding his arms, his chin jutting out defiantly. "No fag will every live under your roof, remember?"

"I _never _said that," Burt said, pushing himself back to his feet. "Kurt. I'm not the father you know. Just ask Kurt." He nodded over to his true son

"How can you possibly be okay with this?" the first Kurt hissed. "That's not _me_! That's impossible!"

"But that _is _you," Burt said quietly. "And I love you. No matter what's going on, whether you're my model son or…" Or whatever the second Kurt had become.

"A prostitute," Finn offered, earning identical glares from both Kurts

"Kurt," Burt said quietly. "He needs help."

Kurt looked at the other Kurt, and his shoulders slumped a little. "When was the last time you moisturized?" he finally asked.

The other Kurt looked embarrassed, lifting one hand to his face. "God, it's been _years_."

Kurt sighed, glancing over at Burt before extending a hand to the other Kurt. "Come on. I'll get you straightened out."

Once both the Kurts were out of the room, Burt turned to Finn, sinking back onto the couch. "Tell me again what happened?"

"I don't know," Finn answered. "I was out looking for this abandoned tuberculosis hospital Puck told me about, and I took a wrong turn and next thing I knew, I saw Kurt... the not-Kurt leaning against a building and talking to some sleazy old creeper. And the creeper had his hands all over Kurt's ass and was saying things like 'I've never seen you around here before' and Kurt was just smirking at him and saying 'Well maybe you just haven't looked hard enough,' and then he took the creeper's hand and they ducked off and I followed them and saw Kurt was sucking on..." Finn trailed off, gesturing vaguely to his crotch. "On the creeper dude! So I yelled and creeper dude ran off and Kurt got up real fast and started yelling at me, and I told him to come with me. He didn't want to, he kept asking why he should, and what would I give him and he thought I was crazy when I told him he was my brother and that he was supposed to be at home. And I had to promise him all the money in my wallet for him to come with me, and he was all pouty and stuff in the car, and when I pulled into the driveway he spazzed out and tried to jump out of the car before I turned it off and I had to wrestle him down and drag him inside because I knew you'd be really mad that he was sucking off strangers in alleys only he was already sitting in here with you two and playing Sorry and... yeah." Finn took a huge breath after that wall of words. "That's everything..."

Burt pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath. From the rantings of the other-Kurt, he had picked up a little more of the story. Whatever happened to make a second Kurt (Kurt did not have a twin brother. Burt was a witness for his delivery) had given him the absolute shittiest life Burt could imagine for his son. The other-Kurt did not like his father and did not trust him, and from the sounds of things, didn't even live with him. He lived on the streets as a prostitute, based off of what Finn witnessed, and he did not look healthy in the least. Even standing beside Kurt, who was shorter than most boys his age and very svelte after all the cheerleading practice his crazy coach put him through, the other-Kurt was a good three inches shorter and skeletal. "I don't know what happened..." Burt began slowly.

"Alternate universe," Finn suggested. "This sort of thing happens all the time in movies. There's just one thing different, and _everything _changes. And then he must have fallen through a hole or something to end up here. We can't let Kurt touch him, though, or that'll make a paradox that could destroy both universes."

"Kurt's already touched him," Carole pointed out softly. "He took his hand. And the universe still exists."

"Oh. Yeah. Right."

"Alternate universe," Burt repeated, looking over at Carole.

"So... we need to send him back?" Even as Carole said that, though, she was shaking her head. Burt agreed with her, echoing the movement.

"He's _Kurt._ He's my _son_. I cannot, _will _not send him back to that sort of life..."

Carole smiled, squeezing Burt's shoulder and straightening up. "Well. We seem to be collecting sons. I'll set a fifth for dinner."/lj-cut


	2. Chapter 2

This chapter is dedicated to the web browser Opera. With their latest update and new 'stacked tabs' functionality, I am going to figure out how to have a browser's babies. Because I love opening tons of tabs but hate seeing them open. And also, Opera just rocks. Now if only they could get an LJ-switcher function...

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**TWO ALIKE**

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"He just _lets _you buy whatever you want?" the other-Kurt marveled, stepping into Kurt's massive walk-in closet and staring around him in wonder. "God, Dad would have _killed _me if I spent... this _vest _is over $400 alone!" His eyes were wide, hands held in front of him, fingers twitching as if they itched to touch, but he didn't dare dirty any of the designerwear hanging in Kurt's closet according to an intricate organizational system that took into account designer, style, color, and season. "I hope you have your closet insured... this is tens of thousands of dollars in clothes alone! _Is that a new McQueen!_"

"I never pay full price," Kurt said smugly. "You'd be amazed at what a bit of bartering can get you. Go on, pick something out. If you're me, I can't be caught dead wearing that Wal-Mart trash... though I can approve of your attempts to upstyle it."

The other-Kurt looked embarrassed again, drawing his arms around his shirt. "It's not like I have unlimited funds to waste on clothing," he muttered.

"It's not a waste," Kurt argued, "and you know it. Here." Since the other-Kurt wasn't making any move to pick things out, Kurt stepped up to the challenge, snatching up a pair of Calvin Klein skinny jeans, a Ralph Lauren turtleneck, and the McQueen sweater the other-Kurt had noticed. "This will do for now. But first, you need to get cleaned up. Don't tell me you've forgotten where the bathroom is..."

"I don't know," other-Kurt answered, reluctantly stepping out of the closet. "The basement was unfinished when I was thrown out."

"When was that?" Kurt asked softly, gesturing toward his bathroom. "When you... when you came out?"

"Yeah." Other-Kurt stepped into the bathroom, looking around in awe again. "This is all for you?"

"Pretty much," Kurt answered. "I mean, sometimes Finn comes down, but he prefers the upstairs bathroom. So you've been on your own for a year?"

"Three," other-Kurt answered, turning to look at Kurt. "When I was fourteen..."

"I didn't come out until I was sixteen..."

"Well... maybe your dad didn't force the issue." Other-Kurt sighed, running his fingers over Kurt's plush towel. "He... was especially drunk one night, and belligerent-"

"Dad rarely drinks more than a beer at a time," Kurt argued. "He's _never _drunk."

"Well, bully for you." Other-Kurt clenched his hand into a fist on top of the towel bar. "Ever since Mom died, Dad just drank more and more, and got meaner and meaner. He'd... he'd hit me. I'd always have to wear long sleeves and high necks to hide the bruises. But all the teachers thought it was just the bullies at schools making me walk stiffly, so they never bothered to ask. And I didn't tell them. I didn't want to go into foster care. If my own father didn't give a shit about me, why would some stranger?"

Kurt listened, horrified, his own arms creeping around his waist, hugging himself. _My dad loves me, _he thought to himself. _He'd __**never **__hit me..._ But he had been afraid of him, hadn't he? In middle school, when Kurt was realizing just what it meant to be gay, he had been so terrified that his father would turn on him. Throw him out. And then he'd end up like this other-Kurt, bitter and hurting. A _prostitute_.

"I have to finish school," other-Kurt was saying. "I _have _to. I'm taking as many AP classes as I can. I'll find the money for the tests somehow. I _need _to get scholarships so I can go to college and get out of Lima. So I can make a life for myself. I don't want to suck cock in alleys my whole life. I'm _better _than that..."

"It's okay," Kurt said softly, stepping toward other-Kurt and setting his hand lightly on his shoulder. "It's going to be okay. You're _here _now. And Dad... Dad will _never _throw you out, and he will _never _hit you. You'll be safe, and you can stop... stop whoring yourself out. You'll go to school with me, and together, we'll get out of Lima. Everything will get better."


	3. Chapter 3

**TWO ALIKE**

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"More potatoes... Kurt?" Carole asked, offering the bowl to the other-Kurt as the five Hudmels sat around the dinner table.

"No thank you," Kurt answered, as other-Kurt gave a silent nod, accepting the bowl from Carole.

"This is confusing," Finn said, smacking his fork down. "I can't call you _both _Kurt!"

Kurt and other-Kurt looked at each other. They looked even more identical now that other-Kurt had showered and styled his hair (in a very similar fashion to Kurt) and was dressed in designerwear. Once other-Kurt fattened up a bit, the only difference between the two would be their height.

"I'm Kurt Hummel," Kurt said slowly, setting his fork down. "This is _my _universe, and in this universe, _I'm _supposed to be Kurt."

"Suits me just fine," other-Kurt said with a shrug of one shoulder. "I've never liked the name Kurt anyway. Too much like Burt."

Kurt glanced over at Burt. "_I _like my name."

"Yes, well, as we've already established, _your _father's an angel," other-Kurt said snidely. "Whereas mine is the devil incarnate. The fewer ties I have to him, the better."

"It's fine," Burt said, trying to keep the peace. "It's actually quite good that you don't mind... Is there something you would prefer to be called?"

"No preference," other-Kurt answered. "Just nothing -urty."

"How about Friedrich?" Carole suggested. "From Sound of Music, those were the two sons, right? Friedrich and Kurt?"

"_Friedrich_?" Other-Kurt looked skeptical. "In _Lima_?"

"What about Kevin?" Finn suggested. "Or Kyle. Or Chris. Something with a kuh sound, like Kurt?"

"Boring..." other-Kurt said with a dismissive shake of his head.

"Marc," Kurt piped up, poking at his peas. "Or..."

"_Alexander_." Both Kurt and other-Kurt spoke in unison, looking up, identical pale eyes meeting.

"In homage," Kurt said.

"To his genius."

"His unfortunate death."

"Paying tribute..." Other-Kurt nodded. "I _like _it. Alexander."

"Alex," Kurt said with a little smile. "Because it's going to be shortened anyway. Alex Hummel."

"Alex... who?" Burt asked, frowning a little at the boys and how scarily in-sync they were.

"Alexander _McQueen_," Kurt said, turning to give his father an exasperated look. "The _designer_."

"He died in February," other-Kurt... no, _Alex_ said. "February 11. Suicide."

"Don't you remember?" Both Kurt and Alex lifted their hands at the same time, flicked their bangs back at the same time. Burt swallowed a little at the creep factor of suddenly having _twins_. "Two days after your _Deadliest Catch _captain died, my idol did. We were both inconsolable all week...?"

"Yes..." Burt said slowly. "Yeah, I remember that. That's who you're talking about?"

Two sets of identical nods, two heads bobbing at the same rhythm. Burt picked up his glass and took a gulp of his drink. He was going to need something stronger to survive with _two _Kurt Hummels in his house...


	4. Chapter 4

**TWO ALIKE**

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When Burt came downstairs for breakfast the next day, one of the Kurts was sitting at the table, legs drawn up to his chest, feet on the seat, one arm wrapped around his knees, a mug of coffee in front of him. The boy flinched when Burt stepped into the room, pale eyes watching him warily over pajama-clad knees.

"Alex?" Burt asked, pouring himself a mug. The boy gave a jerky nod, tracking Burt's movements.

Burt sighed, sinking into the seat across from Alex. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you..." he said slowly, sipping his coffee. He had half-hoped when he woke up, Alex would be gone and this would all have been a dream.

"Who says you have to do anything?" Alex's voice was bitter and defensive, a pout tugging at his lips. "I'm just fine on my own. I don't _need _you-"

Burt held up his hand to cut off Alex's rant. "I know, I know. You're a strong, independent young man, clearly capable of surviving on your own. And I'm... pleased to see that. To know that if something were to happen to me, Kurt wouldn't be completely lost. But I hate seeing what he'd become... God, I..." He looked Alex over, shaking his head. "I don't know what your dad is like, Alex. But I _love _Kurt. He is my world. It doesn't matter to me that he's gay, or spends half my money on clothes, or forces me to eat the blandest diet in the world for fear of another heart attack. Kurt is my _son_. And I'm sorry for whatever went wrong between us in your world. I'm, god, K-Alex, I'm _so _sorry. This should not have been your life."

Alex shifted in his seat, looking away from Burt, his defensiveness still prickling in his face even if some of the hostility had bled away.

"As far as I'm concerned," Burt continued, "you're my Kurt too. My Alex. You've had a rough life so far. And I'm sorry. I want to make it up to you. I want to make it better. I want to give you a better life."

"I don't need anything," Alex murmured.

"But you want it," Burt said quietly. "I saw how you kept touching that sweater Kurt gave you last night. You _are _Kurt. You love fashion and music and expensive moisturizing goop. But you haven't had that in a long time." Alex ducked his head, and Burt's heart broke anew for this battered version of his son. "I want you to have that, Alex. I want you to have a dad who loves you and who is proud of you, just the way you are. A stepmom who can't wait to fatten you up and smother you in hugs. A brother—or two—who go with you to Glee practices and look out for you at school and help you study and make friends. I _want _you to have that, because you deserve it. Because you're amazing, Alex. If you're _anything _like Kurt, I know you are amazing."

Alex was silent for a very long time, his face thoughtful. Burt remained silent as well, sipping his coffee, waiting for Alex to make the next move. Eventually, the boy looked up, frowning over his knees. "That's all well and good, but what's the catch?"

"Catch?" Burt asked.

"No one ever _gives _you anything in life," Alex said. "If someone makes an offer like that, there's _always _a catch. What's yours?"

Burt sighed, setting his mug down. "No catch. None I can think of, at least. Except-"

Alex nodded, his expression unimpressed, clearly saying _Exactly._

"You don't exist," Burt pointed out quietly. "I can't register you in school—you're not my son. I can't take you to the doctor—you're not on my insurance. I can't adopt you... you simply do not exist. And I have no idea how to fix that."

"So you don't know what to do with me," Alex murmured.

Burt nodded. "I'm sorry. I _want _to help. I just don't know how. But I'll think of something."

"I have to go to school," Alex said. "I _can't _miss lessons. I can't. If I... switch back, I won't be able to catch up. It's all I can do just to keep up with the classes on top of everything else. I can't _not _go-"

"Alex!" Burt cut off Alex's increasingly desperate rant with another hand up, shaking his head at the boy. "Are you and Kurt in the same classes?"

"I think so..." Alex whispered, hunching against his legs.

"Then Kurt will bring his things home and teach you the day's lessons. You won't fall behind."


	5. Chapter 5

**TWO ALIKE**

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That plan, simple as it was, actually worked surprisingly well. Alex and Kurt did have the same classes, and Kurt didn't mind going over the day's lessons and homework with Alex, cementing the lessons in his own mind (at first. As the days passed, he grew more frustrated with it). More than just schoolwork, though, Kurt taught Alex about all his friends, about Glee and Cheerios, and about cars (Alex, it turns out, had never worked a day at the garage in his life. That had been Burt's realm, and Alex hadn't wanted to trespass).

In return, Alex taught Kurt self-defense and punked up his wardrobe a bit, adding a more dangerous edge to Kurt's look.

Days turned into weeks which turned into months. Alex put on both height and weight, soon a perfect match for Kurt. Both boys were accustomed to being mistaken for the other, adopting the same exasperated tone to correct a wrong name, often paired with an eye roll and a long-suffering glance at the other.

The hardest part ended up being the boredom. Alex couldn't go to school, and Finn and Kurt couldn't bring friends over. Until they knew what was going to happen with Alex, the Hudmels decided that it would be best to keep his existence a secret. At first, Alex had relished the days of sleeping in late, of eating whatever he wanted, of trying on every piece of clothing in Kurt's closet, and of commandeering the big-screen tv. But all of those pastimes grew tiresome after weeks of no respite, and Alex often watched longingly as Kurt slipped out for a shopping trip with Mercedes or a Glee rehearsal or Cheerios practice.

This world was lonely. Perfect for Kurt, but lonely for Alex. He sighed, resting his chin on his hand, watching Kurt sleep. They shared a room—Burt had bought an extra bed—and actually got along quite well. _Much _better than when Finn and Kurt had shared. Kurt had told him about that. Kurt had told him about everything, every last detail of the differences in their lives.

Really, it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair to any of them, this secret half-life of Alex's. Alex wanted to have friends like Kurt did. Kurt wanted to bring his friends over to his house again and stop making excuses why Mercedes could no longer drop by for a visit. Finn just wanted to _tell _somebody.

Something had to be done. And Alex knew exactly what. He lowered his eyes to the paper in front of him, picked up his pen, and began to write.

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"Dad?" Kurt burst into the kitchen the next day, looking disheveled and worried, a note clasped in his hands, his hair a shocking riot of bedhead, still in his pajamas. "Dad! Is Alex up here?"

Burt looked up from his newspaper, frowning at how distraught his son looked. "No... he usually sleeps in until we're all gone, though. What's up?"

Kurt thrust the note at Burt, and Burt took it, reading slowly.

_Dear Hummel-Hudsons, _the note read. _If you're reading this... I'm already gone. Or Kurt woke up and stopped me, but I don't think he will. He was awfully tired after Cheerios practice._

_Anyway, I'm gone. And yes, probably in the way you're fearing. I can't do this anymore. I can't... don't get me wrong, I LOVE this world. I love all of you. I never thought I'd say that about my family, but it's true. Everything here is so perfect... and it's killing me._

_I don't know how I fell into this universe. I don't know if I'll fall back. I don't know if this is just some fantastic dream I'll wake up from. And the more I live this perfection, the more I hear about how wonderful my life will be (once I become a real person in this world, with all the government-approved paperwork), the more the thought of waking up, of going back, the more that __hurts__. Words cannot even begin to describe my utter terror at the thought of losing this. You don't understand... it's like every dream I've ever had, rolled into one and made real. Losing this would be... it would be worse than when Mom died. So much worse. I couldn't... I can't... I'm not that strong. I'm not. I'm sorry. I can't..._

_I love you all. And I want you all to know that you have made my last six weeks absolutely wonderful. I can't remember ever being happier, feeling healthier, or just... just __laughing__. God, before I came here, I can't remember the last time I laughed. But now that you've welcomed me into your family, I've laughed so many times... I've danced and sung, I've learned Cheerios routines (Me? A CHEERIO?), I've made friends (brothers, friends, same thing, right?) and I've had a mother—and a father—again. A family. A home._

_But I'm not supposed to be here. There's only room for one Kurt Hummel, and as much as I may want to be Alex, Kurt's bad-ass brother, we all know I'm really Kurt. A duplicate. Unneeded. So I'm fixing that. I'm leaving tonight, and I'm going to kill myself. I won't tell you where, or how. Just know that I'm doing this for you. You won't be able to claim my body if it's found—I don't exist, remember? But... but that will be okay. I may die, but at least I'll know that I'm still in your hearts. That, for six glorious weeks, I was loved._

_Burt: Thank you for being the best father a boy could ask for. For giving me hope again._

_Carole: Your hugs meant the world to me. And your dinners. I've __missed__ having a mother, so, so much._

_Finn: Keep practicing that throw. You've got star quarterback potential, you just need to get your gawkiness under control! Keep on being awesome. I hope you and Rachel go far._

_Kurt: You may not realize it, but your life is practically perfect. Take no day for granted. Fulfill your dreams—fulfill __our__ dreams, for both our sakes._

_I love you all, so, so much._

_Kurt 'Alexander' Hummel_

"Oh my god," Burt said slowly, his blood running cold. "It's a suicide note. We have to find him! In the cars! _Now!_"


	6. Chapter 6

The song sung by Kurt is "This is the Moment" from Jekyll and Hyde. You can listen to it here tiny. cc/ a74ko (youtube link)

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**TWO ALIKE**

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They didn't find him. Finn sat at the back of the choir room, staring blankly down at the back of Kurt's head. Alex had run off in the night last week, and they had searched all day, calling his name, looking everywhere, but they couldn't find him alive or dead. Burt had called both Kurt and Finn in sick, and they skipped school for the rest of the week, searching for Alex, reading newspapers and watching the news for reports of a body being found, and stumbling around the house in blind dazes. They were back at school now, at Glee, for the first time since Alex's disappearance. His death. Kurt pointed out quietly that if they didn't find him that first morning, chances were very, _very _good that he was well and truly dead. _I'd never kill myself, _Kurt had whispered, reaching over to take Burt's hand, _too much to live for, but if I __**did**__... if I said I would, then I would. I wouldn't back out. If things got that far..._

Kurt had been the one holding them together these past few days. He had been the one remembering to eat meals, forcing them to sit down, to _talk_. He had been the one who had slowly eased them out of their grief, enabling Burt and Finn's mom to return to work and Finn and Kurt to go back to school.

And now he was getting up to sing a song for his Glee assignment. He looked a little pale and shaky, but he was blaming it on bullies. No one else in Glee knew that Finn and Kurt had lost their brother last week.

Kurt met Finn's eyes and smiled weakly before he squared his shoulders, lifted his head, and started to sing.

This is the moment!

This is the day,

When I send all my doubts and demons

On their way!

Every endeavor,

I have made - ever -

Is coming into play,

Is here and now - today!

This is the moment,

This is the time,

When the momentum and the moment

Are in rhyme!

Give me this moment -

This precious chance -

I'll gather up my past

And make some sense at last!

This is the moment,

When all I've done -

All the dreaming,

Scheming and screaming,

Become one!

This is the day -

See it sparkle and shine,

When all I've lived for

Becomes mine!

For all these years,

I've faced the world alone,

And now the time has come

To prove to them

I've made it on my own!

This is the moment -

My final test -

Destiny beckoned,

I never reckoned,

Second Best!

I won't look down,

I must not fall!

This is the moment,

The sweetest moment of them all!

This is the moment!

Damn all the odds!

This day, or never,

I'll sit forever

With the gods!

When I look back,

I will always recall,

Moment for moment,

This was the moment,

The greatest moment

Of them all!

The song started off slow and subdued, but Kurt hit his stride as the music crescendoed, belting out the words with a triumphant smile. He had his arms stretched out before him, drinking up the cheers and applause from the entire club. From the entire club... except Finn.

Finn couldn't breathe. He could only stare at Kurt, could only watch as Kurt lifted a hand, flicking his bangs into place a self-satisfied smirk on his face. That wasn't the expression of a boy who'd lost his brother, no matter how much Kurt loved to sing. That was... that was the expression of a boy who'd found a life.

He had to get out. Had to get out. Finn stumbled to his feet, knocking his chair over in his haste to dive toward the door. He could hear Rachel calling after him, the worried voices of the Glee Club following, but he couldn't, he couldn't, had to get out, get out get out get out...

Finn ended up huddling in the locker room showers, curled in a corner of one of the stalls, staring at the tiles and shaking. Footsteps. He could hear footsteps. Someone approaching. Finn turned his head to the side when the steps stopped, staring at a pair of very familiar Doc Martins, Kurt's favorite boots. Only those weren't Kurt's feet. Finn trailed his eyes up and up until he was looking at his stepbrother's face.

At _Alex's _face.

"Where is he?" Finn asked hoarsely. "What did you do with Kurt?"

"I am Kurt," the other boy answered smoothly. "Finn, come on. Everyone's worried about you." He dropped into a crouch, graceful as ever, holding out one hand to help Finn up.

Alex and Kurt were identical. They were practically the same height (only when they stood side-by-side now could anyone tell Kurt was half an inch taller), and Alex no longer looked gaunt and haunted. They wore the same clothes, styled their hair the same way. They moved in unison, spoke in unison, _existed _in unison. There was no way Finn could prove that the boy in front of him was one or the other.

But he knew. He _knew_. Finn looked into those eyes, cold as ice, and he knew this wasn't his Kurt. "No," he said, taking the other's hand and squeezing it until the other boy winced. "_No_. Tell me. Tell me where Kurt is!"

"Finn, stop it!" he hissed, yanking his hand away. "_I'm _Kurt. There's only room for one Kurt!"

"No, there isn't! There could have been two! You could have both lived!" Finn shook his head desperately. "Alex, please, where's Kurt? What did you do with him? Please!"

"What are you going to do?" Alex demanded, straightening up. "Tell Burt? Call the police? What are you going to tell them? That I'm not Kurt Hummel? Any DNA test will prove you wrong..."

"What did you do with Kurt?"

"Why does it matter which of us is here?" Alex folded his arms, scowling at Finn. "Aren't we the same person?"

"Kurt would never have kicked you out!"

"_Kurt _was squandering his life!" Alex snapped. "Sulking around, thinking it was so much worse than it actually is. So he's bullied a bit. So what? He had _no _idea how good he had it! I'm actually _appreciating _his blessings!"

"Where is he?" Finn whispered.

Alex lifted his chin, looking off to the side. "You won't find him. I buried him in a shallow grave in the woods, so the animals will find him first." His eyes slid back to Finn's, cold, hard, threatening. "And if you tell Burt or Carole? What good would that do? Burt thinks I'm his son. He _loves _his son. If you tell him Kurt's actually dead and Alex is in his place? You'd be lucky if he just had a heart attack. You'd _kill _him, Finn. His death would be on your hands. And why tell Carole? She'd only tell Burt, and the same thing would happen. And no one else would believe you. Alternate universes? The 'evil' twin?"

"You killed Kurt...?"

Alex snapped his fingers in front of Finn's glazed-over eyes. "Suck it up. You never liked him anyway. Too _gay_. But I'm here now. And I know all about Kurt's life, his friends, his Cheerios routines... I'll fit into his life, and don't _you _worry, Finn. Unlike Kurt, I can actually kick some butt. The bullies will back off. Not just me, they'll leave you alone too. Trust me, Finn." Alex took a step back, smirking. "It gets _so _much better..."


End file.
